26% of Jordanian wives face domestic abuse from husbands — DoS

AMMAN — Almost 26 per cent of Jordanian wives ages 15 to 49 have been abused by their husbands, while only 1 per cent of husbands have been abused by their wives, according to statistics published by the Department of Statistics (DoS).

The reported abuse covers emotional, physical and sexual abuse, according to the statistics. 

“Females in Jordan are increasingly suffering from domestic abuse,” Ahmad Abu Rumman, the secretary general of the Society for Victims of Family Violence, told The Jordan Times on Monday.

Rumman stated that victims of domestic violence are majorly females and children under the age of 18. 

Domestic abuse causes long-term mental and emotional effects, Rumman said. 

The first step to help these victims is to eliminate the cause of the abuse and then provide the victims with specialised mental-health and medical care, Rumman said. 

Rumman noted the common link between drug abuse and domestic violence: “Drug abuse is often a result and cause of domestic violence.” 

Drug abuse can elicit abusive behaviour, like domestic violence, and being a victim of domestic violence can lead to substance abuse, Rumman explained.

The Family Protection Department of the Public Security Directorate (PSD) offers assistance for domestic violence victims, according to the Jordanian Law 15 of 2017, according to the PSD website.

Seventeen women were murdered during 2020, of which many were murdered by their spouses, according to a report published by SIGI, a local women’s organisation. 

One of SIGI’s centres received over 800 cases of domestic abuse during a three-month period, equivalent to the total domestic abuse cases received during the year 2019.